mgoblog - conerhttp://mgoblog.com/taxonomy/term/3397/0
enThis Week in Terrible Purdue Raphttp://mgoblog.com/content/week-terrible-purdue-rap
<p>Typically this column tries to grab a cross-section of the happenings of social media. But sometimes an event is so all-encompassing that we can&rsquo;t look away. No matter how hard we try to move on, a big ol&rsquo; train wreck will always grab and hold our attention. Fortunately, this one comes with actual trains:</p>
<p><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jIcNDOZ3sjQ" width="420"></iframe></p>
<p align="left"><em>[NOTE: The magic men behind this video have been trying desperately to pull these videos down as fast as we can bring them up, so if it gets pulled down, don&rsquo;t worry. The Internet never forgets.]</em></p>
<p align="left">There are just so many things going on here. Matt Painter makes a half-assed cameo. They attempt to rhyme &ldquo;outdone&rdquo; with &ldquo;Boiler Up&rdquo; (among about thirty other failed rhymes). The Lonely Island beat. The guy in the tuxedo. The overreliance on the inherent awesomeness of having a big drum. The sunglasses. The lyrics. Ooooooh, the lyrics.</p>
<p align="left">As you can imagine, many people have put in their two cents on the topic. Among the suggested reading:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<div align="left">
Sports Illustrated <a href="http://college-football.si.com/2013/08/20/purdue-set-rap-back-two-decades/">transcribed the lyrics</a>, and in doing so realized half-way through that they were doing the work of the devil.</div>
</li>
<li>
<div align="left">
Purdue blog Hammer and Rails <a href="http://www.hammerandrails.com/2013/8/20/4641266/you-oughta-be-proud-the-breakdown">created a breakdown</a> pointing out a number of factual inaccuracies, as well as to the general WTFness.</div>
</li>
<li>
<div align="left">
Spencer Hall over at EDSBS provided a helpful how-to <a href="http://www.everydayshouldbesaturday.com/2013/8/20/4640484/a-beginners-guide-to-team-themed-videos">guide for making team-themed music videos</a>. The takeaway: don&rsquo;t.</div>
</li>
<li>
<div align="left">
Adam Jacobi at Black Hearts Gold Pants showed how Kirk Ferentz would have thrown down, which&hellip; <a href="http://www.blackheartgoldpants.com/2013/8/20/4640360/purdue-rap-video-kendrick-lamar-control-kirk-ferentz">just read it</a>.</div>
</li>
</ul>
<p align="left">The only remaining question is where exactly this video falls in the Pantheon of the Pathetic. Let&rsquo;s take a brief run through the history of terrible team tunes:</p>
<p align="left"><strong>[AFTER THE JUMP: Yes, of course there will be Freekbass.]</strong></p>
<a name="more"></a><!--break--><!--break--><p align="left"><strong>We Are ND:</strong></p>
<p align="left">Told ya.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="698f1788-d9f6-4d71-92fa-be622ce27967">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/P6mE9Au3CwM?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/P6mE9Au3CwM?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>The (blue and) gold standard in terrible media. This was actually produced by Notre Dame. They proudly posted it on their YouTube page, billing it as the latest production by award-winning artist Freekbass. This was just embarrassing, even considering the high standard for embarrassment in South Bend:</p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="0b0e34df-dd07-47ad-8651-d3c15bc84116">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2CmXwuZ2iME?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2CmXwuZ2iME?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>These are not unlike the roller skates Notre Dame wore in the National Championship game.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>This is Indiana:</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="c95ea413-692d-4568-841e-247cd1af0e0c">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8hdKnr7rpE?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8hdKnr7rpE?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>If there was any doubt, it&rsquo;s pretty clear by now that the state of Indiana can no longer be trusted with technology. They only figured out Daylight Savings Time like five years ago.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>We Are Mizzou:</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="c6da90a1-79cd-412d-8b08-7df6893893b4">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-vMfqosdDbY?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-vMfqosdDbY?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>Do you kinda wonder what the Purdue video would look and sound like if it was auto-tuned within an inch of its life? Put that block M down, son. You&rsquo;re doing it wrong.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Crank Dat Gopherboy</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="624dbc63-7cfd-424b-8b46-94ab03b28aa9">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/l209xt_YraM?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/l209xt_YraM?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>The title says it all. Please don&rsquo;t click it. You&rsquo;ll listen to it for 12 seconds, get pissed at me, and punch a co-worker, and you&rsquo;ll blame me. And I don&rsquo;t want that. Even by writing the title I probably put the song in your head, undoing 6 years of work. And for that, I am deeply sorry.</p>
<p>&hellip;</p>
<p>&hellip;</p>
<p>&hellip;</p>
<p>YOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU</p>
<p>Sorry.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Willie&rsquo;s Chant</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="5a3fd0b2-4f0f-45e7-8835-2f887dc2587c">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-A-05wPlQQ4?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-A-05wPlQQ4?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>KSU was trying to pump some life into their program a few years back, and they came up with the Power Towel and the Willie Chant. Watch this, and tell me it wasn&rsquo;t at least somewhat inspired by this guy:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/Towelie_2.gif"><img alt="Towelie" border="0" height="184" rel="lightbox" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/Towelie_thumb.gif" title="Towelie" width="244" /></a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Return of the Quack</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="451ffaf6-6c07-4296-9047-3ce9149ecb86">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/f_P1PPy7FTo?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/f_P1PPy7FTo?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>Joey Harrington sighting JOEY HARRINGTON SIGHTING</p>
<p>[Side note: did you know Return of the Mack reached #2 on the Billboard Chart. The song that kept it from reaching #1? MMMBop. Sarcastic slow clap, 1997. Way to go.]</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Oklahoma Things:</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="becf9a0f-7224-404a-a53e-de498c227796">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/L0EDsDOgORY?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/L0EDsDOgORY?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="4698ebc3-52bb-4649-b08d-f7bec72002a1">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oCgP2wYA5tI?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oCgP2wYA5tI?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>Repeat offenders are rare. Stick your finger in the light socket once and you learn a valuable lesson. Do it twice, and your parents start mentally downgrading their expectations for your career achievements. Purdue did this, noticed that everyone laughed their asses off, and tried like heck to get the thing pulled (spoiler: they won&rsquo;t succeed). Oklahoma did the one, and then they did the other one. Point: Purdue.</p>
<p><strong>LizHoney2U:</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="87f5e327-3fce-42a0-be5f-e96cfcfd35a3">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IZ1BO0vAUD8?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IZ1BO0vAUD8?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>Team Song + Leave Britney Alone = WPS.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Call Me Maybe:</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="02b56214-2cb0-4b26-8895-f0701c5ce78f">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/TxhIhHv8oIM?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/TxhIhHv8oIM?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>A bunch of schools collaborated on this particular abomination. On the plus side, they left the singing to the meh pop star. On the downside, that inflatable Nebraska thing. I&rsquo;m tempted to say, &ldquo;show this to Dave Brandon so he knows the possible ramifications of having a mascot,&rdquo; but there&rsquo;s a decent chance that&rsquo;s how SkyNet happens, and I&rsquo;m not going to be responsible for that. I&rsquo;m already on the hook for the Crank Dat thing.</p>
<p>&hellip;</p>
<p>YOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Party in the OSU</strong></p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="693c889f-25f4-4bc5-a962-4a0344c122c1">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6du8UQZJAhI?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6du8UQZJAhI?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p>Okay, this doesn&rsquo;t really belong in this discussion, but listen to Aaron Craft. Listen to him. He has the kind of voice that would make Homeric seamen crash into the rocks, but in an attempt to make the bad lady stop.</p>
<p>Finally, <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/picture-pages-datbull">remember that this happened</a>.</p>
<p>One caveat, though. It&rsquo;s all fun and games in the abstract, but mock these videos at your own peril. Remember this little ditty?</p>
<p><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/pVENWl8uBeg" width="420"></iframe></p>
<p>Not so funny now, is it?</p>
<p><strong>Exception</strong>: The following people can create team songs if you want. In fact, it is encouraged.</p>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="fec80f97-1765-47ff-bda3-24f63f0b07ac">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/b_qEttgmvjw?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/b_qEttgmvjw?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<div class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" id="2516dbb7-b6cc-4e50-89a8-23c0bdab26d6">
<div>
<object height="252" width="448"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tnMCZiS9MTI?hl=en&amp;hd=1" /><embed height="252" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/tnMCZiS9MTI?hl=en&amp;hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="448"></embed></object></div>
</div>
<p><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" allowtransparency="allowtransparency" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://myspace.com/play/video/d.cone-goin-in-for-life.-53961047-53961047" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="500"></iframe></p>
<p><em>EDIT: Holy crap I forgot Aggie Swag. Forgiveness please.</em></p>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cdOqgOv51fQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
http://mgoblog.com/content/week-terrible-purdue-rap#commentsaaron craftconerdatbull fo life fo fo lifefreekbassjabrill peppersjdk and reythis week in the twitterverseThu, 22 Aug 2013 13:43:34 +0000BiSB80692 at http://mgoblog.comFirst Glance: Marshall grasps for a new way forwardhttp://mgoblog.com/links/first-glance-marshall-grasps-new-way-forward
<p>FWIW, this is where Conelius Jones ended up. RIP nonstop Coner dreams.</p>
<a name="more"></a><div class="field field-type-link field-field-link">
<div class="field-label">Link:&nbsp;</div>
<div class="field-items">
<div class="field-item odd">
<a href="http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/blog/dr_saturday/post/First-Glance-Marshall-grasps-for-a-new-way-forw?urn=ncaaf-wp219" target="_blank">First Glance: Marshall grasps for a new way forward</a> </div>
</div>
</div>
http://mgoblog.com/links/first-glance-marshall-grasps-new-way-forward#commentsconermgoblogTue, 22 Mar 2011 04:45:08 +000053265 at http://mgoblog.comOffers Coming in for Junior QB Prospecthttp://mgoblog.com/links/offers-coming-junior-qb-prospect
<p>Name: Bennie Coney. Status: must-get third string fan favorite.</p>
<a name="more"></a><div class="field field-type-link field-field-link">
<div class="field-label">Link:&nbsp;</div>
<div class="field-items">
<div class="field-item odd">
<a href="http://michigan.scout.com/2/987583.html" target="_blank">Offers Coming in for Junior QB Prospect</a> </div>
</div>
</div>
http://mgoblog.com/links/offers-coming-junior-qb-prospect#commentsconermgoblogWed, 11 Aug 2010 02:28:54 +000040690 at http://mgoblog.comUnverified Voracity Isn't Afraid Of A Zeig Rushhttp://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-isnt-afraid-zeig-rush
<p><em>See what I did there?</em></p>
<p><strong>The Zeiglering. </strong>According to Trey Zeigler, Trey Zeigler <a href="http://www.umhoops.com/2010/04/13/decision-day-trey-zeigler/">will announce his college destination</a> on ESPNU tomorrow. A guy named Drew Ellis <a href="http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/trey-announce-tomorrow">said he was delaying his decision</a>, but on matters related to Trey Zeigler my number one source is Trey Zeigler. His destination is unknown but Michigan and Central Michigan, where his dad just picked up a four-year extension, are usually the teams mentioned as having the best shot. UCLA doesn't think it's part of the festival and Arizona State didn't get a visit and is almost definitely out of the picture. Michigan State is the other team in Ziegler's top five. They have a logjam at the three with Keith Appling and others, though.</p>
<p>ESPNU's signing day special kicks off at 4 PM, which means we'll be waiting anxiously for an hour before Zeigler shows up. No one has anything approaching solid information. I think it's Central but I am biased to believe nothing good will happen with Michigan basketball recruiting. </p>
<p><strong>Fun.</strong> I don't know if this means anything other than the NCAA <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5081772">doing its due diligence</a>: </p>
<blockquote><p>&quot;The NCAA has met with individuals involved with the West Virginia football program to identify any potential rules violations,&quot; school officials said in a statement, released on Tuesday. &quot;The university has fully cooperated with the NCAA during this process. West Virginia University and its department of intercollegiate athletics is committed to operating its athletics department in conformance with the legislation and policies of the NCAA and the Big East Conference.&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
<p>We'll see if anything comes of it. Right now it's just a phone call and another opportunity for people to restate their opinions about how Rodriguez should or should not be fired.</p>
<p><strong>Epic Red.</strong> The <em>Daily</em> continues its series of articles that have no-foolies established it as probably the best newspaper of any variety covering Michigan sports. Seriously. the sort of long-form profile/investigative pieces that are the main thing people point to when they lament the coming end of newspapers have been almost exclusively the province of the Daily this year. There was the <a href="http://www.michigandaily.com/content/life-death-and-football-story-unlikely-bond-between-two-football-powerhouses">Pahokee article</a>, the <a href="http://www.michigandaily.com/content/antonio-bass-profile">Antonio Bass profile</a>, and now a look at <a href="http://michigandaily.com/content/man-who-built-michigan-hockey-red-berenson-player-coach-and-teacher">Red Berenson 26 years into his career</a> as Michigan's head coach. Here's Red recruiting Chris Fox:</p>
<blockquote><p>“If you want to be a Michigan Man, you should know in the next week,” the coach said to the recruit, who looked and felt much more like a kid than he did when he walked into the office just minutes before. “It will just become clear.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>It became clear. </p>
<p>(HT: <a href="http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/great-michigan-daily-article-red-berenson">MGoJen</a>.)</p>
<p><strong>Quarterback. Rapper. Auteur. </strong>David Cone has <a href="http://statesboroherald.upickem.net/engine/Details.aspx?p=V&amp;c=15905&amp;s=3291392&amp;i=1#SD">a short film in the Statesboro Film Festival</a>. Seriously. </p>
<p>/in before lame freep joke based on ending.</p>
<p><strong>A &quot;these are my readers&quot; moment.</strong> So a junior clarinet major at Michigan sends me this Microsoft paint reimagining of Tom Harmon:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/5cb8fa60558b_CFF4/tomharmon2.0.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px auto; display: block; float: none; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="tom harmon 2.0" border="0" alt="tom harmon 2.0" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/5cb8fa60558b_CFF4/tomharmon2.0_thumb.jpg" width="454" height="329" /></a> </p>
<p>It's a revamp of a Terran Marine:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/5cb8fa60558b_CFF4/terran_marine.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="terran_marine" border="0" alt="terran_marine" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/5cb8fa60558b_CFF4/terran_marine_thumb.jpg" width="564" height="314" /></a> </p>
<p>By his account, this took Andrew Kobalka seven hours. He asked I not retouch it before posting. </p>
<p>Yeah… these are my readers. I am a privileged man. </p>
<p><strong>Vada update.</strong> It kind of sucks that I'm tracking the progress of three separate former Michigan players battling cancer, but at least the news on all three has been encouraging of late. Vada Murray's wife has just updated their caringbridge site and the news in it <a href="http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/vadamurray">seems positive</a>: </p>
<blockquote><p>We needed more tissue in order for the tissue to be tested to get Vada into a very promising clinical trial.&#160; In order to get into this trial, Vada's cancer needed to carry a particular mutation.&#160; After lots of waiting for the trial to be approved, a screw up at the lab, and many sleepless nights, we learned recently that Vada's cancer <strong>does carry this mutation</strong>.&#160; The presence of the mutation is significant.&#160; Only 7% of non-smoking adenocarcinoma patients carry this mutation.&#160; We haven't felt recently like the odds have been in our favor, but now they are. We plan to head to Karmanos shortly for some tests &amp; his official &quot;start&quot; of the trial.&#160; </p>
<p>Vada has felt great physically but emotionally has been out of gas, especially for the last two months. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>So there's that. Phil Brabbs just underwent a bone marrow transpant and seems in good spirits. </p>
<p><strong>We cheer and cheer again.</strong> Touch The Banner brings <a href="http://touchthebanner.blogspot.com/2010/04/lloyd-carr-experience.html">a reveal and a story</a>. The reveal: epic MGoCommenter Magnus was in the glee club. The story comes from the GC's 150th anniversary celebration, which featured one Lloyd Carr:</p>
<blockquote><p>Coach Carr told a story about former UMMGC director Willis Patterson, who directed the group from 1969 to 1975. When Carr was head coach, he invited Patterson to teach his players how to sing &quot;The Victors,&quot; Michigan's fight song. After ten years of teaching the team the song, Patterson once said to Carr, &quot;You know, those players just aren't very good at singing that song.&quot;</p>
<p>Carr responded, &quot;Well, who's teaching them?&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
<p><strong>Etc.:</strong> BHGP's <a href="http://www.blackheartgoldpants.com/2010/4/13/1418881/its-not-plagiarism-if-you-link-to">latest linkdump post</a> notes that Angry Iowa Running Back Hating God has stricken all three of Iowa's potential starters for their upcoming spring game, documents the annual refugee camp forming outside Carver-Hawkeye, and embeds a truly epic redneck video. WLA <a href="http://www.wolverineliberationarmy.com/blog/?p=4097">propaganda posters</a> ho.</p>
<a name="more"></a>http://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-isnt-afraid-zeig-rush#commentsconerfree press jihadlloyd carrred berensonthese are my readerstrey zeiglerunverified voracityvada murrayTue, 13 Apr 2010 21:23:26 +0000Brian32690 at http://mgoblog.comUnverified Voracity Debates Conehttp://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-debates-cone
<p><strong>Updated.</strong> The <a href="http://www.mgoblog.com/content/michigan-depth-chart-class-0">depth chart by class</a> has been updated. Let me know if there are errors. I believe Brandin Hawthorne is gunning for a medical redshirt and that Nick Sheridan is going the GA route this year. I put Baquer Sayed on it since he seems like he has a chance to contribute. By my count, Michigan has 13 to give right now, so a class of 18 or so is probably in the cards next year.</p>
<p><strong>Jalen winners.</strong> The four winners of signed Jalen Rose t-shirts: Lauren Leb, Brandon Cox, Nathan McFeters, and Brooks Dunn. Congrats. As a bonus, Jalen roped in Jimmy King so your shirts have bonus signatures.</p>
<p><strong>This happened, technically.</strong> There was a <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4884401">meeting about the NCAA thing</a>: </p>
<blockquote><p>The University of Michigan Board of Regents discussed the NCAA investigation into the football program on Wednesday, The Associated Press has learned.</p>
<p>A person familiar with the session confirmed the probe was part of the discussion. The person spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the school is not disclosing any details of what it calls an informal meeting.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Really? Fascinating. Details? </p>
<blockquote><p>The person did not discuss any details with the AP.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Outstanding. Obviously, if I hear anything that qualifies as information I will relay it.</p>
<p><strong>Antonio Bass, in repose.</strong> <a href="http://www.michigandaily.com/content/antonio-bass-profile?page=0,0">Outstanding article in the Daily</a> on Antonio Bass, a man with cojones: </p>
<blockquote><p>Late that night, Carr’s phone rang. </p>
<p>“Coach, I just wanted to tell you,” Bass said in a slow, deliberate voice. “I’ve made my decision. I’m going to Michigan State.” </p>
<p>Bass today says he could feel Carr’s normally warm, welcoming personality, the one Carr reserved for all his players, stiffening up. His voice became cold, formal. </p>
<p>“Well, Antonio, I wish you luck up there,” Carr said.</p>
<p>Silence. Bass held in a chuckle as long as he could before blurting out, “Nah, coach, I’m just playing. I’m ready to be a Wolverine.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>If deadly silences could kill, eh? Bass is walking in May with a communications degree.</p>
<p><strong>CONEOFF.</strong> The Coner has graduated, but there must be another goofy fan favorite backup quarterback who pwns Michigan's I-AA opponent. Candidate #1 is obvious: Conelius Jones. His name is Cone from the future. </p>
<p>Candidate #2 has the flow, though, and support from spectacularly named walk-on Ohene Opong-Owusu. Here's Jack Kennedy:</p>
<p><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2YAm6Hz3FDE&amp;color1=0xb1b1b1&amp;color2=0xcfcfcf&amp;hl=en_US&amp;feature=player_embedded&amp;fs=1" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2YAm6Hz3FDE&amp;color1=0xb1b1b1&amp;color2=0xcfcfcf&amp;hl=en_US&amp;feature=player_embedded&amp;fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></p>
<p>It's… kind of good. Isn't it? I mean, given your expectations going in it vastly exceeded them, right? </p>
<p><strong>In the Times.</strong> Two(!) relevant items, one of them with a big honking picture of Michigan's new athletic director and quotes from Mary Sue Coleman. It, unsurprisingly, is a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/02/sports/02athletics.html">trend piece on athletic departments hiring corporate CEOs</a>: </p>
<blockquote><p>“That business experience is almost essential,” said Mary Sue Coleman, the Michigan president, who said she also hired Brandon because he had <a href="http://www.mgoblue.com/genrel/010510aab.html">strong ties to the university</a>, having played football for the Wolverines and served as a university regent. </p>
<p>Still, she said, “It’s hard for me to imagine a successful athletic director these days that doesn’t have a deep understanding and skills for the financial side of an athletic department.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>The other is an analysis of the possible <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/30/sports/30bigten.html">ripple effects from Big Ten expansion</a>. OSU's president is the guy most heavily quoted. This is the most disturbing quote:</p>
<blockquote><p>“I do think the Big Ten holds a key, maybe the key, in terms of what is going to be the next phase of college athletics,” Ohio State’s Gee said. “We need to explore this carefully. The law of unintended consequences applies most specifically to college athletics.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>I hope that this does not imply one of those super conference things that ends up with 30-team Big Ten facing off with 30-team SEC. </p>
<p>(Brandon HT: The <a href="http://annarborchronicle.com/2010/02/01/um-athletics-6/">Ann Arbor Chronicle</a>.)</p>
<p><strong>In the year 2000. </strong><a href="http://www.detnews.com/article/20100202/SPORTS0201/2020416/1361/Mike-Hart-wants-to-be-Michigan-s-football-coach">Mike Hart's ambition</a> remains the same: </p>
<blockquote><p>Hart has been through a lot in his first two NFL seasons, from a torn ACL as a rookie last year to being waived and re-signed by the Colts twice this season. And he admits he contemplated calling it a career last fall and getting started on &quot;my real life.&quot; </p>
<p>And just what might that be? </p>
<p>&quot;I want to coach,&quot; Hart said. &quot;And hopefully I'll be the head coach at Michigan one day. That's my goal.&quot; </p>
<p>Head coach? </p>
<p>&quot;No joke,&quot; Hart said, smiling. &quot;That's ultimately what I want to do. I love Michigan. That's a big part of me.&quot; </p>
</blockquote>
<p>When Fred Jackson retires (in four years?), every Michigan fan on the planet will want one guy. No matter if it makes any sense, which it might not. </p>
<p>That article also contains a by now standard response to the standard &quot;so… Rich Rodriguez?&quot; question posed all former Michigan football players kicking around the NFL: I support Rodriguez, but he has to win. </p>
<p><strong>Etc.:</strong> The Pitt to Big Ten story was <a href="http://www.blackheartgoldpants.com/2010/2/1/1286993/its-not-plagiarism-if-you-link-to">really irresponsible and stupid</a>, and even the response to it was <a href="http://www.pittblather.com/2010/02/01/yet-no-one-is-on-record/">shoddily reported</a>.</p>
<a name="more"></a>http://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-debates-cone#commentsantonio bassbig ten expansionconelius jonesconerdave brandonfree press jihadjack kennedymike hartunverified voracityThu, 04 Feb 2010 17:13:02 +0000Brian28958 at http://mgoblog.comUnverified Voracity Found A Northern Daniel Moorehttp://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-found-northern-daniel-moore
<p><strong>So this happened. </strong>Will MS Paint ever go too far? If it <a href="http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/ms-paint-collection">hasn't already</a>, it won't ever get there:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/woodsonint.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px auto; display: block; float: none; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="woodson-int" border="0" alt="woodson-int" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/woodsonint_thumb.jpg" width="504" height="477" /></a> If you think that's impressive or, more likely, disturbing you should see user LongLiveBo's <a href="http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/ms-paint-collection">collection of these</a> that now goes six deep. &quot;Barwis Beach&quot; is a favorite. I hope LLB is a hobo or student, because if he's not his job is really, really boring.</p>
<p><strong>Bzzzt.</strong> Mark Snyder got the <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4835932">defensive coordinator job at South Florida</a>, which takes him off Michigan's list for their linebackers opening. He also talked to reporters, including this here site's Tim Sullivan, about the position at halftime of the UConn game. Birkett has a quote <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-football/michigan-coach-rich-rodriguez-in-no-rush-to-fill-staff-opening-more-notes/">currently open in my tabs</a> so we'll go with that:</p>
<blockquote><p>“Still talking to guys,” Rodriguez said Sunday at halftime of the <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-basketball/michigan-holds-on-to-upset-no-15-connecticut-68-63/">Michigan-UConn basketball game</a>. “I may do it in a week or 2, I may do it after signing day.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Hiring a guy right now does not seem like a huge priority. If it was going to get done before signing day it probably would have gotten done at the coaches meetings. </p>
<p><strong>The new name.</strong> And since all Michigan coaching news involves the Bulls in some way, the new name on the list is recently departed USF linebackers coach David Blackwell. He's talked with Michigan about the job: </p>
<blockquote><p>Linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator <b>David Blackwell</b> has had contact with Michigan about its linebackers job.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Blackwell was officially <a href="http://www.baynews9.com/content/40/2010/1/17/571359.html">given his walking papers</a> and is looking for a new gig. As you can see in the table below, Blackwell has extensive experience as a linebackers coach. </p>
<table style="width: 402px" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" bgcolor="#bbbbbb" align="center">
<tbody>
<tr class="odd">
<td>
<table style="width: 400px" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1" align="center">
<colgroup><col width="10%" /><col width="25%" /><col width="65%" /></colgroup>
<tbody>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#005841" height="20" colspan="3"><span class="style1">Coaching Experience - 16 Years</span></td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20" width="32">Year</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" width="134">School/Team</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" width="224">Assignment</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">1993</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">East Carolina</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Rush Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">1994</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">East Carolina</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Rush Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">1995</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">East Carolina</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Rush Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">1996</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Illinois State</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Defensive Line</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">1997</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Illinois State</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Defensive Line</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">1998</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Illinois State</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">1999</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Illinois State</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2000</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Pittsburgh</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">
<p>Linebackers</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2001</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Pittsburgh</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2002</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Pittsburgh</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2003</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Clemson</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2004</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Clemson</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2005</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Clemson</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2006</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Clemson</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Recruiting Coordinator / Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2007</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Clemson</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Inside Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2008</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Clemson</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Inside Linebackers</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even" height="20">
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee" height="20">2009</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">USF</td>
<td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Co-Defensive Coordinator / Linebackers</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>That's twelve straight years Blackwell's been coaching the position, eight years as a recruiting coordinator, and one year as the increasingly popular &quot;co-defensive coordinator.&quot; His bio has a bunch of accomplishments that are debatably his—it's hard to assign credit or blame to a single position coach, but it is true that Clemson was a consistently excellent defensive team with Blackwell coaching and his departure was because Tommy Bowden got axed, not because he just wasn't hacking it. </p>
<p>Also, if some people are concerned that this might be a sort of crony hire, that's hard to see. Rodriguez was long gone from Clemson by the time Blackwell showed up and whatever weird USF connection he's got going appears totally coincidental since Blackwell only got one year with the Bulls before Jim Leavitt had to choke a walk-on. Rodriguez's familiarity with Blackwell is limited to coaching against his Pitt team for three years early in his tenure at West Virginia and whatever contact he maintained with Tommy Bowden's staff at Clemson. This is not a guy Rodriguez goes way back with. </p>
<p>In Blackwell's single season at USF the Bulls finished 49th in rushing defense, 25th in pass defense, 24th in total defense, and 19th in scoring D. However, some of USF hilariously weak non-conference opponents had something to do with that. Wofford, Western Kentucky, Charleston Southern are two I-AA teams and a team (WKU) that was a I-AA three years ago.&#160; Also, those numbers are a slight step back from the previous year, when USF was 10th in rushing D and 11th in total D against a tougher slate of opponents.</p>
<p>In games against actual competition, USF gave up 7 to an explosive Florida State outfit and 19 to West Virginia but 34 to Cincinnati, 41 to Pitt, 31 to Rutgers, 31 to Miami, and 29 to UConn in losses. Not all of those numbers are as bad as that, though. Like Michigan in 2008, USF's defense was crushed once Matt Grothe went out and ridiculously erratic BJ Daniels came in. Daniels seemingly went three-and-out or threw a 70-yard touchdown on every drive, so there were a lot of opportunities for opponents to score. </p>
<p>Also, one year is not a good sample size.</p>
<p>Blackwell also has <a href="http://twitter.com/coachblackwell">a twitter</a>. It tends towards multiple exclamation points and was last updated in August.</p>
<p><strong>Brief, unavoidably homoerotic interlude.</strong> So this picture of Denard Robinson at his track meet—which MGoBlog covered in detail—has been floating around the internets:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/denardrobinsonripped.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px auto; display: block; float: none; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="denard-robinson-ripped" border="0" alt="denard-robinson-ripped" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/denardrobinsonripped_thumb.jpg" width="374" height="460" /></a>1. Daaaaang. I bet he can punch through a cow. <br />2. It looks like Denard got a temporary case of Greg Oden disease there, eh? (The one that makes you look old, not the one that makes you have a series of increasingly terrible injuries that cause people to compare you to Sam Bowie.)&#160; <br />3. Pretty sure the big bald white dude in the background is OL coach Greg Frey.</p>
<p><strong>As long as we're talking about Robinson,</strong> Devin Gardner finally getting the piece of paper he needed from Inkster and enrolling at Michigan for spring practice opens up a world of possibilities at quarterback. Everyone's got their opinion on this—I've been getting emails about it since Gardner committed—and here's mine. Assumptions:</p>
<ul>
<li>Gardner will almost certainly not be better than Tate Forcier this fall. If Michigan gives a freshman quarterback extensive playing time for a third straight year it is bad, Rodriguez-firin' type news. </li>
<li>Redshirting Gardner is best for both him and the program unless Gardner plays a lot better than he did at the UA game and in the state finals. That throwing motion degraded over the course of the year to the point where he was really pushing the ball; he needs probably a solid year of coaching to go back to the zippy delivery he developed over the summer.</li>
<li>Robinson didn't even run the zone read last year and is so far behind Tate that once there are other options at quarterback it makes sense to get Robinson's athleticism on the field in any way possible. </li>
</ul>
<p>So. Tate starts, Gardner is groomed as the backup quarterback but not put on the field unless circumstances demand it. I just can't see a few plays late in blowouts being more helpful for Gardner and the program than a fifth year. If Tate gets dinged for a series or two, Robinson is the guy. If he's out for an extended period, it's time to put in Gardner (and pray). Robinson evolves into a slash player that takes some wildcat-type snaps at quarterback and also functions as a slot receiver/tailback. Michigan should also look at having him return kicks. </p>
<p><strong>Cone, mad flow, nothing new here</strong>. Via TomVH, David &quot;Febreze&quot; Cone's latest masterpiece:</p>
<p><object width="402" height="48"><param name="movie" value="http://twiturm.com/audio/twiturm_player_l.swf?soundFile=wida9" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://twiturm.com/audio/twiturm_player_l.swf?soundFile=wida9" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="402" height="48"></embed></object></p>
<p>(Someone needs to unescape their text.)</p>
<p><strong>This is why you don't hire your head coach as an assistant.</strong> I think most people thought West Virginia was in a little bit of trouble when Doc Holliday got snatched up by Marshall, but probably not this much trouble:</p>
<blockquote><div class="entry-body fanshot-body">
<h3 class="link-title"><a href="http://www.wvgazette.com/Sports/Marshall/201001170460">Doc &quot;The Traitor&quot; Holliday</a></h3>
<div class="description">
<p>Didn't he say that he would not go after Florida commits when he came here as an assistant?</p>
<p>After his &quot;racist&quot; comments while at NC State I never thought I could forgive him. I got over it and accepted him with open arms. After this, I hope he is never welcomed back at WVU.</p>
<p>Hide the trash cans if he comes to the Civic Center on Wednesday.</p>
</div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<p>That was after Holliday swooped in and snake oiled two West Virginia commits away from the 'Eers, so West Virginia fans are probably even more pissed off now that WR Darius Millines <a href="http://sundaygazettemail.com/Sports/201001180619">pulled the same trick</a>. Add in Richard Ash and Davion Rogers defecting to Michigan and it's been a suboptimal recruiting year in WVU. They're losing recruits like Tennessee did in the aftermath of the Kiffin fiasco… so who's the head coach there anyway?</p>
<p>The other angle: dude, Doc Holliday is some sort of ninja snake charmer if he can get recruits to bail on a consistently top 25 team in a BCS conference for a mediocre CUSA team in the same state.</p>
<p><strong>Etc.</strong> <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/business-review/underground-printing-follows-steve-barrys---but-not-too-closely/">Underground Printing</a> is featured at AnnArbor.com. I'm quoted about our relationship, which is working out great. Baseball <a href="http://mgoblog.com/diaries/baseball-commit-adam-robinson">picked up a commitment</a> from the top player in Illinois. Teric Jones is <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-football/michigan-football-gets-2011-commitment-from-delonte-hollowell/">moving back to offense</a> for spring. Orson <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2010/1/19/1258965/the-amateur-goes-curling">goes curling and loves it</a>. In three months he will be Canadian. West Virginians search for Rich Rodriguez <a href="http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/west-virginia-still-obsessed-our-coach">vastly more often</a> than people in Ann Arbor.</p>
<a name="more"></a>http://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-found-northern-daniel-moore#commentscoaching changesconerdavid blackwelldenard robinsondevin gardnerpaint is beautifulunverified voracitywest virginia is a post apocalyptic wastelandTue, 19 Jan 2010 18:15:48 +0000Brian27709 at http://mgoblog.comUnverified Voracity Enjoys The Lamentation Of Your Womenhttp://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-enjoys-lamentation-your-women
<p><strong>The lamentation of your women.</strong></p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/Conethedestroyer.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; margin: 5px auto; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Cone-the-destroyer" border="0" alt="Cone-the-destroyer" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/Conethedestroyer_thumb.jpg" width="476" height="755" /></a></p>
<p align="center">via <a href="http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/possible-promise-our-boys-macbeth">user chunkums</a></p>
<p>He loves it. The lamentation. </p>
<p><strong>All American.</strong> I'm pleasantly surprised that both <a href="http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1028724">recruiting</a> <a href="http://www.scout.com/2/928745.html">networks</a> named Brandon Graham to their All-America teams after he was snubbed by the first of the infinite lists that came out—FWAA or something. Graham and Zoltan the Inconceivable also feature on the <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/brandon-graham-zoltan-mesko-second-team-all-americans/">AP's second team</a>, which is nice. Zoltan got the second team nod at Scout, too.</p>
<p>This Drew Butler kid who stole first team honors and the Ray Guy award… well… probably deserved it. Before you stone me to death—a fate I willingly accept for such heresy—please let me note that Butler averaged almost 49(!) yards a kick and Georgia led the country with a 42.8 yard net average. </p>
<p><strong>Expansion bits.</strong> Various notes and errata on possible expansion:</p>
<ul>
<li>Sentiment is running <a href="http://www.nunesmagician.com/2009/12/15/1201715/five-reasons-syracuse-wont-go-to">strongly against a move to the Big Ten</a> at Syracuse blog<em>&#160;</em><a href="http://nunesmagician.blogspot.com/"><em>Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician</em></a> with 56% opposed to a move versus just 19% in favor. In the comments the most commonly cited reason is John Boeheim, who is credited with assembling the Big East with his bare hands and would instantly quit if he had to play in a different sandbox. </li>
<li>BHGP points out that the BFD with the CIC is <a href="http://www.blackheartgoldpants.com/2009/12/15/1201483/big-ten-expansion-warning-system">post-grad Research I stuff</a>, not necessarily undergraduate education, which Big Ten schools are supposed to look at as a necessary evil. </li>
<li>Missouri's chancellor said MU would &quot;<a href="http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaking_news/story/1632957.html">listen</a>&quot; to the Big Ten should it come calling, so they will at least flirt with a Big 12 departure. </li>
</ul>
<p>The useful comment thread from the Grid of Judgment has these additional bits of information:</p>
<ul>
<li>Pitt's got a monster endowment: $2.334 billion, according to unnecessarily precise poster Don. That's more than anyone in the league except Northwestern and Michigan. </li>
<li>Multiple posters suggest that Nebraska is seriously pissed off you guys about Texas's reign as supreme unquestioned ruler of the Big 12 and could <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/big-ten-expansion-grid-judgment#comment-320086">really give a crap</a> about the rest of the league save for Colorado. Oklahoma already rotates off their schedule. </li>
<li>Rutgers is apparently <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/big-ten-expansion-grid-judgment#comment-320295">a mediocre school on the decline</a>, which explains why there are so many kids from Jersey at Michigan. </li>
</ul>
<p>And any thread on expansion comes with an increasingly preposterous series of candidate schools that make sense in no way whatsoever: Texas A&amp;M, TCU, Toronto, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Auburn, Rice—seriously, someone suggested Rice—etc. </p>
<p>Virginia Tech seems plausible at first blush but after UVA fought tooth and nail to get them into the ACC lest the governor get out his pimp hand a jump to the Big Ten seems wildly improbable. They would probably be more willing to jump than any other ACC team since they could give a crap about basketball and don't have longstanding rivalries with anyone in the league. Last time I brought this up I mentioned Boston College as a crazy off-board option, and I guess they remain one. They bring a huge market with them but one that is slightly busy with other things, and they don't fit the Big Ten's huge public research university model. They would get tripped up by the Research One thing.</p>
<p>Pitt still looks like the strongest candidate by far. For people wondering about money, remember that Pitt can be slightly less marketable than the Big Ten average—which I don't think they are given their currently monstrous basketball program—and still be a major asset because of the championship game and increased profitability from the Big Ten Network. </p>
<p><strong>As far as divisions go,</strong> there's no way to make them work geographically without turning into a version of the Big 12 on steroids by chucking Penn State, Michigan, and Ohio State into the same division. You also can't keep all the rivalries together if Pitt is indeed the pick. You try to split this into six team divisions:</p>
<ul>
<li>Michigan-OSU-MSU </li>
<li>Iowa-Wisconsin-Minnesota </li>
<li>PSU-Pitt </li>
<li>Illinois-Northwestern </li>
<li>Indiana-Purdue </li>
</ul>
<p>Can't be done without murdering one traditional rivalry or the entire point of putting Pitt in the conference. Missouri is much easier, since you just throw them in with Illinois and Northwestern and put them in the Michigan pod. </p>
<p>I'd prefer an expanded status quo with a ninth conference game, guaranteed rivalry pairs, and a couple byes but apparently you have to have two divisions to have a title game, which is inane but true. </p>
<p><strong>Heismens of all varieties.</strong> So the actual Heisman went to a good running back on an undefeated team instead of, you know, the best player in the country. Or even the best running back. A lot of this can be ascribed to the Heisman's bloated list of voters and their lack of accountability. I mean, seriously, <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2009/12/14/1200259/the-heisman-does-not-discriminate">here's a guy</a> with a Heisman vote whose ballot read Ingram, Tebow, McCoy: </p>
<blockquote><p>I never saw Gerhart play an entire game (we work all day Saturday and Saturday night) and only saw a few minutes of Suh’s game against Texas. I refused to vote for somebody based on highlights.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Facepalm!</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/ironhide_facepalm.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; margin: 5px auto; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="ironhide_facepalm" border="0" alt="ironhide_facepalm" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/ironhide_facepalm_thumb.jpg" width="450" height="342" /></a></p>
<p>I'm impressed that this guy managed to spin his ignorance into a principled stance against voting &quot;based on highlights&quot; instead of taking a principled stand against voting based on the three football games he saw this year. </p>
<p>So hurrah for the <a href="http://www.blueworkhorse.com/articles/college-football/announcing-the-2009-sports-blog-heisman-trophy-winner">Sports Blog Heisman</a> coming out approximately correct by handing Toby Gerhart the trophy over Ndamukong Suh by one point. Here's guessing that everyone who voted saw Gerhart and Suh for at least one game.&#160; Not that bloggers are perfect. A few years ago when <a href="http://rakesofmallow.com">Rakes of Mallow</a> was running its now-defunct version of the same thing, the winner was Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan, which ugh. </p>
<p><strong>Of course.</strong> Here's Fielding Yost curling in a silly hat:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/1940Yostcurling.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; margin: 5px auto; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="1940Yostcurling" border="0" alt="1940Yostcurling" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/1940Yostcurling_thumb.jpg" width="428" height="540" /></a></p>
<p>That is all. More <a href="http://mvictors.com/?p=5809">pictures of Yost</a>, none of them nearly so ridiculous, at <a href="http://mvictors.com/">MVictors</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Etc.:</strong> Corwin Brown is <a href="http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2009/12/assistant-corwin-brown-reportedly-not-retained-by-notre-dame.html">out at Notre Dame</a>. If there is an opening on the coaching staff, could he fill it? He doesn't coach LBs, unfortunately, but has slayed on the recruiting trail. Wonk asks &quot;<a href="http://www.basketballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=823">What Happened to Michigan</a>?&quot;</p>
<a name="more"></a>http://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-enjoys-lamentation-your-women#commentsbig ten expansionbrandon grahamconerfielding yostheismanunverified voracityWed, 16 Dec 2009 16:23:05 +0000Brian26471 at http://mgoblog.comUpon Further Review: Offense vs Delaware Statehttp://mgoblog.com/content/upon-further-review-offense-vs-delaware-state
<p><strong>Personnel notes:</strong> Everyone gets in. One correction from Monday's game column: the second-string center in this game was Tim McAvoy, not Rocko Khoury.</p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O45</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Nickel</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Shaw</td>
<td>2</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Moosman(-1) beaten down the line, partially because Schilling didn't stay to help any; a cutback is not possible with the backside DE crashing down and Shaw ends up plowing into the guy Moosman is escorting down the line, falling forward for a couple.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O43</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>8</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Nickel</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Rollout hitch</td>
<td>Mathews</td>
<td>14</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Wide open to the point where this five yard hitch can get turned up for nine more. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O29</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>I-Form 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-4</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Inside zone</td>
<td>Shaw</td>
<td>2</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Huyge(-1) driven back by the DSU DT right into the path of Shaw, who slows up as a result, actually impacting the DT a yard in the backfield. He cant make a one-armed tackle, though, and Shaw squirts outside where an unblocked linebacker grabs him by the feet.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O27</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>8</td>
<td>Shotgun 4-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Bubble screen</td>
<td>Odoms</td>
<td>25</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMl1rzN7ijU" rel="lightvideo">Extremely open</a> with the DSU LB lined up a good two yards inside of Odoms and slow to react to the bubble. He watches the exchange, only getting out on Odoms when Forcier pulls up to throw, by which point it's way too late. Despite the CB forcing the play inside Odoms can zip between him and the LB all the way down to the 1. (CA, 3, screen)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O2 </td>
<td>1</td>
<td>G</td>
<td>I-Form Big</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>Goal line</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Iso</td>
<td>Shaw</td>
<td>2</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Yay we blew a I-AA team off the ball. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZVzcp0Lt3s" rel="lightvideo">Good YAC by Shaw</a>, though.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td colspan="13"><strong>Drive Notes:</strong> Touchdown, 7-0, 12 min 1st Q.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M28</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 4-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>QB lead draw</td>
<td>Robinson</td>
<td>7</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">This isn't that hard against a shifted line: kick the DE out, double the DT, shoot the RB at the linebacker right over the hole, and use Robinson's speed to pick up good yardage. Both guys blocking the playside DT peel off to attempt a block on a blitzing linebacker who's just running himself out of the play, allowing that guy to come off his block and tackle after 6-7. </td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M35</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Shotgun 3-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone counter dive</td>
<td>Shaw</td>
<td>8</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Backside DE, who looks like a sixth grader, gets kicked out, one LB runs up for contain and the other gets blocked, and Shaw makes a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-KgDIf-vKM" rel="lightvideo">sharp cut into the hole</a> we all know and love. Linebackers do recover to hold it down a bit. </td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M43</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 3-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>QB zone stretch</td>
<td>Robinson</td>
<td>20</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">This actually gets <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWduab6Iv0c" rel="lightvideo">strung out pretty well by DSU</a>, with the playside DE fighting off Ortmann's block and forcing Robinson wider than he'd like. By the time he cuts up there are three DSU guys in the area and apparently no room, but Robinson manages to squeeze through a hole that doesn't even appear to be there and breaks into the secondary.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O37</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 4-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Edge pitch</td>
<td>Shaw</td>
<td>16</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">One deep safety and an outside corner playing ten yards off the line with an OLB over Grady-19. That guy makes the mistake of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_3m97lEuck" rel="lightvideo">trying to go inside of Grady</a>, giving up the edge, but this was to the wide side of the field and there was no support so even if he tries to fight through the Grady block he's probably not going to have much luck.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O21</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>11</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">DSUs DTs are headed straight upfield. One is easily sealed by Schilling(+1) the other beats Moosman(-1), leaving that guy attempting to charge down Smith. He can't, and there's a bunch of room because a DE's been blown downfield and Grady kicked out the linebacker to that side. Smith can just run outside of the DT.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O10</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>G</td>
<td>Shotgun 3-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td><a href="http://smartfootball.com/run-game/explanation-and-cut-ups-of-the-power-o-run-play">Power off tackle</a></td>
<td>Robinson</td>
<td>4</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Michigan doubles and down-blocks the playside DT, pulling Schilling around to act as a lead blocker as Smith heads outside. The double on the DT gets him blown off the ball but he eventually splits it, throwing Schilling to the ground and tackling Robinson after a moderate gain.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O6</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>G</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back TE</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>6</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">This one goes outside the tackle as a textbook <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/picture-pages-good-scoop">scoop block</a> from Dorrestein(+1) and Huyge(+1) <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88SEdcEdfvs" rel="lightvideo">seals the playside DE</a> and gets Dorrestein out on the MLB. Both those guys get blocked, the OLB to the playside gets taken out by Grady, and it's a walk-in touchdown.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td colspan="13"><strong>Drive Notes:</strong> Touchdown,14-0, 8 min 1st Q.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O39</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun trips</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Inside zone</td>
<td>Shaw</td>
<td>11</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">DSU slanting into the play, driving Moosman and Ortmann back, getting playside of them and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBfpaEtMwW4" rel="lightvideo">forcing a cutback</a>. Ortmann does do a good job of sticking with the block and getting enough push to help with the cutback. The threat of Robinson holds one linebacker outside and he can't make a diving tackle from behind. Shaw spins through another tackle attempt and picks up good yardage. </td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O28</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun trips</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>QB zone stretch</td>
<td>Robinson</td>
<td>8</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Excellent block by Moosman(+1) gets the playside DT sealed; Shaw sees the lane and cuts up inside to provide a block, which isn't great; Robinson hops behind it without losing much speed at all. He takes a hit from the DT, who's given up seven yards of field position, and the ball is raked free.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td colspan="13"><strong>Drive Notes:</strong> Fumble, 21-0, 4 min 1st Q.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O38</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>PA Deep Seam</td>
<td>Grady</td>
<td>38</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Play action fake sucks up the safety ridiculously and gives Grady huge room. Robinson finds him for the touchdown. The throw is short and if I hadn't seen Robinson leave a couple other balls like this short to poor effect I might give him credit for just making sure the ball is complete. I have, though, so I think he just underthrew it. It's not too bad, though, and it's a deep throw, so: (CA,3, protection 1/1)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td colspan="13"><strong>Drive Notes:</strong> Touchdown, 28-0, 3 min 1st Q</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M13</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Ace</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone stretch</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>13</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Playside DE steps inside, which allows Dorrestein to engage him and double with help from Huyge, blowing him way off the ball and giving Smith an easy lane to dart into. Webb kicks out another linebacker, turning it into first down yardage.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M26</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Ace</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone stretch</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>11</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Moosman(+1) gets enough of the playside DT to provide <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUowjXq-9sg" rel="lightvideo">a tough reach block</a>; Smith darts up through a smallish crease between Moosman and Dorrestein. Webb and Huyge have second level blocks, leaving Smith one-on-one with a closing safety in a phonebooth; Smith lowers his shoulder and pops him, falling forward. Tough little guy.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M37</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 2TE Twins</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Inside zone</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>8</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">This is where I think Smith has <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIsLvThxVQQ" rel="lightvideo">some top-end ability</a>. The backside DSU DT has split a double and gotten playside of Dorrestein(-1), which should jam the play up. Smith just hops around the mess, hardly breaking stride or slowing, and manages to zip up through a hole before the unblocked backside DE can close it down. That change of direction is stellar. </td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M45</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Ace</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Inside zone</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>42</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Virtual replay of the last play down to the backside DSU DT zipping inside and Smith <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbspuzGR4Xo" rel="lightvideo">smoothly cutting past it</a> before the backside DE can react. This time a crushing downfield block by Webb(+1) has opened the corner and Smith is off to the races. He does not win the races. It's possible he's just tired. Look at this drive.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O17</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Ace</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Penalty</td>
<td>False start</td>
<td>Schilling </td>
<td>-5</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Oops.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O22</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>15</td>
<td>Shotgun 3-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Rollout hitch</td>
<td>Stonum</td>
<td>19</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Corner to the side where the play is is headed for the parking lot, just amazingly far off the ball. Robinson's a tad late with the throw but it gets there and accurately; it's got some zip, too, allowing Stonum to turn it upfield in the cavernous space afforded and head for first and goal. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O3 </td>
<td>1</td>
<td>G</td>
<td>I-Form Twins</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td><a href="http://smartfootball.com/run-game/explanation-and-cut-ups-of-the-power-o-run-play">Power off tackle</a></td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>-1</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Michigan breaks this bad boy out, as discussed yesterday, but to no effect because Smith does not get the playcall. He heads to the wrong side of Robinson, which makes for an awkward handoff, and runs right into the space the pulling guard vacated. Smith instantly pulled for Shaw.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O4 </td>
<td>2</td>
<td>G</td>
<td>I-Form 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Rollout cross</td>
<td>Roundtree</td>
<td>Inc</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Great block by Grady on the edge to stone a blitzer as Michigan goes play action waggle. Robinson uses the time afforded by Grady to find Roundtree breaking open at the back of the endzone; the throw is a little behind and low, forcing Roundtree to go down and dig it out. Catchable, but unnecessarily difficult; Roundtree can't bring it in. (MA, 2, protection 2/2)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O4 </td>
<td>3</td>
<td>G</td>
<td>Shotgun trips</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>QB zone stretch</td>
<td>Robinson</td>
<td>4</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Robinson darts up in a crease between Dorrestein(+1) and lead blocker Shaw for a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Uwc8oQLCQk" rel="lightvideo">short touchdown</a>. Rodriguez ticked at Shaw for something. </td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td colspan="13"><strong>Drive Notes:</strong> Touchdown, 35-0, 12 min 2nd Q.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M40</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 3-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Grady</td>
<td>5</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Schilling(-1) and Moosman(-1) fail to seal the playside DT on an attempted double, so Grady has little choice but to slam it up into him. They meet at the LOS, are joined by another Hornet, and Grady manages to grind forward for five yards.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M45</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>5</td>
<td>Shotgun 4-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>QB lead draw</td>
<td>Robinson</td>
<td>9</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Down-block double from Moosman and Huyge does get the playside DT blown out of this hole; Huyge(+1) then disconnects to take out one linebacker; Grady cracks the other. Robinson zips through the hole and ends up grinding a pile forward. Grady, okay, but man. When Robinson's doing that you've got issues.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O44</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Ace</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone stretch</td>
<td>Grady</td>
<td>9</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Great cut block by Ortmann gets the backside DT to the ground and opens up a huge cutback lane as Koger blocks the WLB down the line and out of the hole and DSU flows too fast to the edge of the field. Grady cuts it behind, gets grabbed, and does his usual YAC thing.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O35</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>I-Form Twins</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Power off tackle</td>
<td>Grady</td>
<td>7</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Ortmann and Schilling down block and obliterate the playside DT; Koger kicks out the DE. Huyge pulls around but has no one to block because both DSU linebackers follow the FB outside. A filling safety brings Grady down.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O28</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Ace</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Waggle TE Post</td>
<td>Webb</td>
<td>28</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Play action fake again sucks up DSU almost wholly, leaving Webb <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVRhD9QoIGk" rel="lightvideo">in a sea of green wondering where everyone else is</a>. He is Moeaki open. Robinson pulls up late and has a guy in his face, so the throw is harried and way way short. Coverage is so bad that it doesn't matter though. Robinson's problem on these is not seeing stuff fast enough, I think. (MA, 3, protection N/A)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td colspan="13"><strong>Drive Notes:</strong> Touchdown, 42-0, 7 min 2nd Q.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M17</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>I-Form 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Iso</td>
<td>Grady</td>
<td>26</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Sheridan in. Okay: so. I've been half-assing it so far and now this is like 3/4ths assing it. Michigan runs a simple iso play that should be good for a few but for a corner shooting too far inside and letting Grady outside of the leverage, turning like four into a big play.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M43</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>I-Form 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone stretch</td>
<td>Moosman</td>
<td>6</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Moosman(+1) seals away the playside DT and Schilling(+1) gets a very good second level block, springing Grady into the secondary. Quick fill from the safety and Grady's tendency to run right into filling safeties hold it down.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M49</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>4</td>
<td>I-Form 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Iso</td>
<td>Grady</td>
<td>5</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Plowing ahead; decent filling from DSU holds it down, somewhat,</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O46</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 4-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Hitch</td>
<td>Stokes</td>
<td>9</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Open, decent YAC. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O37</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>Shotgun trips</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Bubble screen</td>
<td>Grady(19)</td>
<td>9</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">A crappy throw Grady has to dig out; Webb got beat to the outside here but Grady(+1) makes that guy miss and zips outside the interior pursuit for a good gain. (MA, 2, screen)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O28</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>1</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Huyge(-1) gets pushed into the backfield and basically defeated by the DSU DT, who's playing pretty well here. Smith can't run to the outside of him because the MLB has shot up through the gap developing between the playside guy and the DE, so he has to slow up, spinning through the MLB's arm tackle attempt and getting a yard out of nothing. </td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O27</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>9</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>PA deep hitch</td>
<td>Savoy</td>
<td>20</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Man, when Nick Sheridan surveys, finds nothing, starts rolling out, is pursued by a DE who can't catch him, and finds a wide open WR, you are not good. (CA+, 3, protection 1/1)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O7</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>G</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Grady(24)</td>
<td>7</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">McColgan, the backup FB—where is Moundros?--whiffs on a blitzing LB, which gets him on on Grady; Grady <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygF2CPx4hHU" rel="lightvideo">makes him miss</a>, then jukes another guy, then scores. See above about not good.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td colspan="13"><strong>Drive Notes:</strong> Touchdown, 49-0, 1 min 2nd Q. Last drive of half not charted. Shaw has a couple of nice runs. Charting stops here since the second team OL plays the entire second half. I'll chart certain plays of interest for the rest of the game.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Ln</th>
<th>Dn</th>
<th>Ds</th>
<th>O Form</th>
<th>RB</th>
<th>TE</th>
<th>WR</th>
<th>D Form</th>
<th>Type</th>
<th>Play</th>
<th>Player</th>
<th>Yards</th></tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M49</td>
<td>`1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 4-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>PA TE cross</td>
<td>Moore</td>
<td>16</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Play action on which Brandon Moore just sort of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2roc9Ak_OBM" rel="lightvideo">drifts into a hole in the zone</a>, making his first catch as a Wolverine. (CA, 3, protection 2/2)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O13</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>I-Form 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Inside zone</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>7</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">More <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDQCSj5u-x8" rel="lightvideo">top end savior faire</a> from Smith; just grabbing this for the smooth cut again.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M8</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>I-Form 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Outside zone</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>15</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">Check the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jY5kElyAYSg" rel="lightvideo">juke on the LB</a>. Sweet.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M22</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun trips</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Smith</td>
<td>35</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">McAvoy gets blown back but Smith <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--H1AMZQ94Q" rel="lightvideo">makes the most of it</a>, bouncing off the problems and zipping upfield thanks to a crushing block from Mealer.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M26</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Ace</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Hitch</td>
<td>Stokes</td>
<td>10</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Brw_Ona3a2o" rel="lightvideo">CONESTRAVAGANZA I</a>: Stokes runs a hitch route at the sticks that Cone finds, but he leaves it short and forces Stokes to dig it out. (MA, 2, protection 2/2) Called back because Stoke lined up on the LOS.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M22</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>16</td>
<td>Shotgun 2-back</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Skinny post</td>
<td>Savoy</td>
<td>19</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">CONESTRAVAGANZA II: straight dropback, Cone <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb0m6RlDZhE" rel="lightvideo">ZINGS it</a> to a seriously covered Savoy over the outstretched arm of a linebacker. Dude is all over Savoy's back but he reels it in anyway. That's right: (DO, 2, protection 2/2)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>M43</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun 3-wide</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Run</td>
<td>Zone read stretch</td>
<td>Cox</td>
<td>57</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">McAvoy gets a seal of sorts and Ferrara manages to get a charging linebacker, so there's a small crease that Cox <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBtVQYiYLKA">explodes into</a>, easily outrunning the DSU safety for a touchdown.</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O49</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>10</td>
<td>Shotgun trips</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Bubble screen</td>
<td>Reyes</td>
<td>4</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13">CONE... okay he just <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXBsJKhmvpk" rel="lightvideo">throws a bubble</a>. (CA, 3, screen)</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>O45</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>6</td>
<td>Shotgun 4-wide</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>Base 4-3</td>
<td>Pass</td>
<td>Seam</td>
<td>Reyes</td>
<td>39</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td colspan="13"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18toxVpylGw" rel="lightvideo">CONESTRAVAGANZA III</a>: Dang, man. Reyes runs a seam route past his LB cover guy, doesn't get much separation, and then Cone just drops it in as perfectly as you can. I'm not fudging this it all: (DO, 3, protection 2/2)</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><strong>So, um, charts?</strong></p>
<p>Charts!</p>
<p>(<a href="http://www.mgoblog.com/content/hennechart-legend">Hennechart</a> legend; MA is &quot;marginal&quot;, screen results are in parens.)</p>
<p><strong>TATE FORCIER</strong></p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Opponent</th>
<th>DO</th>
<th>CA</th>
<th>MA</th>
<th>IN</th>
<th>BR</th>
<th>TA</th>
<th>BA</th>
<th>PR </th>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Western Michigan</strong></td>
<td>2</td>
<td>14</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>3</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td><strong>Notre Dame</strong></td>
<td>5</td>
<td>20 (6)</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>4</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>4</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Eastern Michigan</strong></td>
<td>1</td>
<td>8 (2)</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1 (1)</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>4 (1)</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td><strong>Indiana</strong></td>
<td>3</td>
<td>13 (3)</td>
<td>1 (1)</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>5</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>2</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td><strong>Michigan State</strong></td>
<td>5</td>
<td>19 (3)</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>4</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>5</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td><strong>Iowa</strong></td>
<td>1</td>
<td>8(1)</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>3 (2)</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>3</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td><strong>Delaware State</strong></td>
<td>-</td>
<td>2 (1)</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><strong>DENARD ROBINSON</strong></p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Opponent</th>
<th>DO</th>
<th>CA</th>
<th>MA</th>
<th>IN</th>
<th>BR</th>
<th>TA</th>
<th>BA</th>
<th>PR </th>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Western Michigan</strong></td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td><strong>Eastern Michigan</strong></td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1 (1)</td>
<td>2 (1)</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Indiana</strong></td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1 (1)</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Michigan State</strong></td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Iowa</strong></td>
<td>1</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Delaware State</strong></td>
<td>-</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>I'd love to see some Hennechart visualization of those babies. </p>
<p><strong>Wait, why are you providing charts for this one but not the other one?</strong></p>
<p>Offense has a number of defense-independent things. Did you throw the ball in the right place? To an open guy? Did said guy catch it? Etc. It's slightly useful to have the numbers. The defense numbers are not useful at all.&#160; </p>
<p>Also, several readers threatened terrible things if I didn't provide this: </p>
<p><strong>DAVID &quot;FEBREZE&quot; CONE, AKA CONER</strong></p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="odd">
<th>Opponent</th>
<th>DO</th>
<th>CA</th>
<th>MA</th>
<th>IN</th>
<th>BR</th>
<th>TA</th>
<th>BA</th>
<th>PR </th>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td><strong>Delaware State</strong></td>
<td>2</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Dang, son, do work:</p>
<p><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vb0m6RlDZhE&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vb0m6RlDZhE&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object></p>
<p>Receivers: </p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr class="odd">
<th></th>
<th colspan="4">This Game</th>
<th rowspan="19"></th>
<th colspan="4">Totals </th>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<th>Player</th>
<th>0</th>
<th>1</th>
<th>2</th>
<th>3</th>
<th>0</th>
<th>1</th>
<th>2</th>
<th>3</th>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td>Hemingway</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">3 </td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td>1/2</td>
<td>7/7</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>Mathews </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">7</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">1/4</td>
<td>1/2</td>
<td>7/7</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td>Stonum</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td>2 </td>
<td>1/3</td>
<td>3/4</td>
<td>10/10</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>Savoy</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">1/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">1/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">2 </td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">1/2</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">4/4</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td style="vertical-align: top">Odoms </td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">1/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">4</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">1/3</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">4/6</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">13/14</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>Grady-19</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">2</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td>2/2 </td>
<td>9/12</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td>Roundtree</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>0/1</td>
<td>-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">3</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td>1/3</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>Stokes</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>1/1 </td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td>1/1</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>Koger</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td>3/4</td>
<td>3/4</td>
<td>6/7 </td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td>Webb</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">1 </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>3/4</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top"></td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td>Minor</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>1/1</td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>Brown </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td>1/3</td>
<td>1/1</td>
<td>5/6 </td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td style="vertical-align: top">Shaw </td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">0/1</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
</tr>
<tr class="even">
<td>Smith</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td>Grady-24</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>-</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top">- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>- </td>
<td>1/1</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Not exactly a hugely challenging game but they didn't screw up. Roundtree's incompletion was a borderline 1/2. </p>
<p>And a very teeny protection metric:</p>
<p>PROTECTION METRIC: 10/10.</p>
<p>As they say, nothing to see here.</p>
<p><strong>Anything of note on this side of the ball?</strong></p>
<p>Yeah, some stuff. It's a lot easier to pick out interesting plays against overmatched opponents when Michigan is running the ball lots. The good:</p>
<ul>
<li>Vincent Smith showed top-end shiftiness and looks like he'll be a solid back. I compared him to Mike Hart on Monday, and think that remains a pretty good comparison. He's also got a little Noel Devine in him; the way he darts through crevices and effortlessly shifts around traffic is reminiscent of the WVU star. He appears to lack Devine's fifth—or eighth—gear, but he's delivered more pop to defenders in one game than Devine has in three years. He'll be something less than a star but he can be very productive.</li>
<li>Denard Robinson completed some passes yay. </li>
<li>And, of course: CONER.</li>
</ul>
<p>The bad:</p>
<ul>
<li>Robinson left both touchdown passes well short. Against other teams those may have been incompletions or worse. He also left a ball to Robinson well short, turning an easy touchdown into a drop. He didn't do much to dispel the idea of him as a one-trick pony. Pretty good trick, though.</li>
<li>I was a little bothered by how often Delaware State DTs, especially #95 Tyron Hurst, beat Michigan OL on stretch blocking, forcing those smooth backside cuts from Smith. Part of that could be Michigan being very predictable and DSU selling out to contain the stretch, but I didn't think the interior OL had a great day. </li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Heroes?</strong></p>
<p>Everyone.</p>
<p><strong>Goats?</strong></p>
<p>Dude. 63 points, why ask that question?</p>
<p><strong>I always ask it.</strong></p>
<p>Yeah, well, maybe you need to re-evaluate your life some. </p>
<p><strong>Don't go all sanctionious on me here. We've had enough of that for one week.</strong></p>
<p>Fine, fine.</p>
<p><strong>What does it mean for Penn State, and the future?</strong></p>
<p>Not much other than the tailback position should be in good hands for the next few years.</p>
<a name="more"></a>http://mgoblog.com/content/upon-further-review-offense-vs-delaware-state#commentsbaby seal punchingconerdelaware stateupon further reviewvincent smithThu, 22 Oct 2009 19:15:41 +0000Brian23596 at http://mgoblog.comUnverified Voracity Makes A Birdmanhttp://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-makes-birdman
<p><strong>Throw it down, Jimmy Chitwood</strong>. Zach Novak's <a href="http://www.umhoops.com/2009/10/16/michigan-madness-videos/">house-destroying, contest-obliterating slam dunk</a> from Michigan Madness, via <a href="http://umhoops.com">UMHoops</a>:</p>
<p><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5D6jFdF2iCk&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5D6jFdF2iCk&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object></p>
<p>Darius Morris had already picked up a 40 of 40 on his second dunk, which you can also see at Dylan's site, but the Novak dunk ended with various members of the women's team—who were the judges—attempting to give him all of their score placards. So he got like 160 points. Nice points, Novak.</p>
<p>I had to duck out before the scrimmages, so I don't have much else to add about the event. It was worth having and I hope Michigan continues it, though next time maybe the introductions can go much, much quicker? </p>
<p><strong>SIDE NOTE:</strong> Hey, remember <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/sad-pandas">this from the Iowa recap</a>?</p>
<blockquote><p>
<object height="65" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9l7OVtOq6XU&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;start=28" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="http://mgoblog.com/true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="http://mgoblog.com/always" /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9l7OVtOq6XU&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;start=28" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="65" width="320"></embed></object></p>
<p>This disaster was played <em>incessantly</em> over the PA, and we, not being 14-year-old-girls, didn't know what it was. Friend of Blog joked that it was probably a Jonas Brothers song, and we laughed, and then we thought to ourselves <em>IS that a Jonas Brothers song</em>? It turns out no, but it's by the Black Eyed Peas, which is 95% as emasculating. Hell, this <a href="http://www.imeem.com/people/O-V1H-h/playlist/-xh3y3zs/tonights-gonna-be-a-good-night-music-playlist/">imeem playlist by one Shelby Veppert</a>, who—no foolies—is a 19-year old from Columbus who lists Nickelback(!!!) as one of her favorite bands, has the song sandwiched between two Jonas Brothers songs. If Michigan Stadium ever has anything that can be considered a sort of theme song I'm going to buy out Ann Arbor Torch &amp; Pitchfork, and if it's ever something as terrifyingly fey as that thing, I'll storm the castle myself. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Guess what fey, awful disaster of a song was used for the pre-festivities hype video? I've got my torch. Who's coming with me as we storm the guy in the Michigan marketing department who picks the music, find out he's Seth Green's character from <em><strike>Ten Things I Hate About You</strike></em>&#160; <em>Can't Hardly Wait</em>, and mail him to a former Soviet republic? Anybody?</p>
<p><strong>TWIS addendum.</strong> Aaaaargh. I thought I had plenty of Ohio State material (&quot;It's not easy being an Ohio State fan. No wonder we're a drunken army of idiots.&quot;) for <a href="http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/the_sporting_blog/entry/view/39509/this_week_in_schadenfreude_oct._19">This Week In Schadenfreude</a>, and I did, but if I had <a href="http://www.blackheartgoldpants.com/2009/10/18/1090559/wha-happened-week-seven">checked BHGP</a> before I threw it to my editor I would have included this guy four or five times:</p>
<p><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cMBQYD1RJyI&amp;color1=0xb1b1b1&amp;color2=0xcfcfcf&amp;feature=player_embedded&amp;fs=1" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cMBQYD1RJyI&amp;color1=0xb1b1b1&amp;color2=0xcfcfcf&amp;feature=player_embedded&amp;fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></p>
<p>Seriously. Seriously: watch this bucktard. Seriously. He <em>challenges Pryor to a fight</em>. Call Pryor whatever you want—Darko in cleats, arm punter, murder condoner, guy with emotional problems—but there is no way he can't beat the holy hell out of a skinny white dude with a soul patch. And that's not even considering <em>Eleven Warriors'</em> <a href="http://www.elevenwarriors.com/2009/10/five-things-purdue-2.html">withering Purdue recap</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p>I mentioned it last week and feel compelled to bring it up again: Could it be that Pryor simply doesn’t have the necessary mental skills to play QB at the major college level? All we hear is how hard he works in the film room blah blah blah but the end result thus far is a QB just as inconsistent in all phases of the game as last year. </p>
<p>The new wrinkle this week to the TP-Trainwreck was of course the ridiculous comments he made about the offense being ready to explode. Uh, I suppose he meant implode. Here’s a sampling of his mind-numbing handiwork yesterday. It’s like deja vu all over again. And I’m supposed to be happy he’s here for another 2.5 years? </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Holy <em>crap</em>, man. I've been bringing up Ohio State's gaping backup QB hole for a year and a half now, but the hope I held out for an OSU implosion at the position always assumed the disaster would befall OSU in the event of an injury to DiC. This sort of meltdown was a distant possibility harbored in the deepest hearts of Michigan fans, prevented from surfacing because merely speaking the hope would result in Pryor going all Troy Smith on Michigan. </p>
<p>…Which is still a possibility. At this point in Smith's sophomore year he was running for more yards than he passed for and looking a lot like Denard Robinson does right now minus the world-class speed. I'm not ready to bury Pryor yet.</p>
<p><strong> Inside-outside.</strong> I already pulled out Chris Brown's explanation of the differences between the inside and outside zone plays last week, but he's expanded his thinking into <a href="http://smartfootball.com/run-game/a-very-simple-explanation-of-the-zone-runs-and-the-difference-between-inside-zone-and-outside-zone">a full post on his home site</a> that's worth checking out if you're into that sort of thing. I'll try to use that information going forward, though the way Brown describes it the differences are so subtle it might be hard to determine what's what. </p>
<p>One coaching point people have offered up this year during my attempts to discern one play from the other: the thing you want to look at is the alignment of the QB relative to the RB. If they're about even, that's going to be a stretch play. If the QB is a yard or so in front of the tailback, that's usually because the RB's angle is going to be more upfield because the play is an inside zone or other quick-hitting run that aims to punish the opponent for overpursuing on the stretch. It's sort of like a mini version of the pistol, if that makes sense.</p>
<p><strong>Big Ten Hockey wha? </strong>Via <a href="http://michiganhockey.net/?p=732">Michigan Hockey Net</a> and <a href="http://yostbuilt.com">Yost Built</a>, here's the first step towards a <a href="http://host.madison.com/sports/college/hockey/article_79517d2e-b953-52ee-b0e4-9d11b3606084.html">potentially shocking college hockey realignment</a>: </p>
<blockquote><p>A series of high-level discussions took place this summer about the creation of a new men's hockey league featuring the five Big Ten Conference members that sponsor the sport.</p>
<p>But despite support for the endeavor from multiple schools, including the University of Wisconsin, the concept failed to extend beyond the exploratory stage.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Minnesota was against it, Ohio State and Wisconsin for, it and Michigan and Michigan State &quot;brought open minds&quot; to the summer talks, whatever that means. </p>
<p>There are some obvious problems with a Big Ten Hockey conference. With only five teams sponsoring the sport, a BTHC would fall one short of the minimum necessary to garner an NCAA auto-bid (not that the schools in the conference would need one), and one short of conference requirements to sponsor a sport. Unless the prospect of a Big Ten conference would spur Penn State or Illinois to go varsity, it's a non-starter. And as discussed here whenever the topic comes up, Minnesota is the beating heart of the WCHA and is loathe to give up longtime rivalries against a zillion instate schools and, most importantly, North Dakota. </p>
<p>On the other hand, a Big Ten conference would break the current logjam that sees college hockey virtually unable to expand because each conference is full. The remainder of the WCHA would be a highly viable conference, with UND, CC, and Denver all national powers and teams like UMD, SCSU, and even Minnesota-Mankato tourney contenders on a regular basis. Add in UNO with Dean Blais and that's still a strong conference. A CCHA without Michigan and Michigan State would be considerably more rickety, but the recent emergence of Miami and Notre Dame as powers gives the league something to stand on, and a small Big Ten conference would provide a ton of nonconference opportunities for the departed programs to throw around to local schools. </p>
<p>If a Big Ten hockey conference is not in the cards, another crazy move might be: </p>
<blockquote><p>Multiple college hockey sources said UW officials responded to the slowing of the talks by making it known they would consider moving to the CCHA. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>!!!</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/notsofast_1.gif" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="not-so-fast" border="0" alt="not-so-fast" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/notsofast_thumb_1.gif" width="50" height="70" /></a> </p>
<p>Oh no, Corso!</p>
<blockquote><p>Frazier acknowledged that UW would be a &quot;jewel'' for the CCHA, but he denied such rhetoric, saying, &quot;We're loyal to the WCHA.&quot;</p>
<p>…Asked about the notion, Alvarez said men's coach Mike Eaves wasn't interested in changing leagues. &quot;If Mike's not interested, I'm not interested,'' Alvarez said. &quot;I'd be interested in other things. As I've said before, regionalizing hockey makes sense.''</p>
</blockquote>
<p>My head is spinning here.</p>
<p><strong>Etc.:</strong> Meta: Seth Godin on &quot;<a href="http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/10/notice-me.html">notice me</a>,&quot; which is a lot of what the web emphasizes but fails to have a purpose in and of itself. <a href="http://www.michigandaily.com/content/against-delaware-state-david-cone-has-his-moment">CONER</a>. (Yes, I'm charting him. Call off the hounds.) </p>
<p>Wait. Wait:</p>
<blockquote><p>“I was trying to get in at wideout, too, to be honest, but it didn’t work,” Cone said. “I took a couple (reps in practice) a couple weeks ago just because I’m tall, but they gotta get some more confidence in me first.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Okay. Carry on with your life.</p>
<a name="more"></a>http://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-makes-birdman#commentsbasketballbig ten hockeyconerget off my lawn you kidsi've got a feeling i'm going to punch the black eyed peaslolbuckeyesohio stateterrelle pryor has emotional problemszack novakMon, 19 Oct 2009 19:04:54 +0000Brian23459 at http://mgoblog.comUnverified Voracity Has Hot Sellershttp://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-has-hot-sellers
<p><strong>New shirts!</strong> The <a href="http://mgoblogstore.com">MGoStore</a> is rocking two new shirts. One of them is pretty obvious. The other is, er… not. Click either for link:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblogstore.com/index.php?p=prod_page&amp;id=16" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Print" border="0" alt="Print" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/shoelacetshirt.jpg" width="304" height="304" /></a> <a href="http://mgoblogstore.com/index.php?p=prod_page&amp;id=17" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="notorious-cone" border="0" alt="notorious-cone" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/notoriouscone.jpg" width="304" height="304" /></a> </p>
<p>Yes, the back of the Cone shirt says &quot;leave ya twisted with chalk around ya body&quot; in tribute to <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-desires-wagers" target="_blank">Cone rapping up a storm</a>. WOOOOO. Get 'em while they last. Shoelace will be around for a bit, of course. Cone will be in our hearts forever but since it's kind of doubtful he gets a fifth year you probably want to scoop those bad boys up ASAP. </p>
<p><strong>NOTE</strong> for folks who live in Ann Arbor and hate the idea of paying shipping costs: MGoShirts are available at Underground's <a href="http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?formtype=address&amp;addtohistory=&amp;address=1103%20S%20University%20Ave&amp;city=Ann%20Arbor&amp;state=MI&amp;zipcode=48104-2593&amp;country=US&amp;geodiff=1" target="_blank">retail space on South U</a>. My cut there is the same as the one online, for people super concerned about the cash flow here. (This does happen.) </p>
<p><strong>Outback Bowlin'. </strong>Orson Swindle would do well to avoid this vein-popping Zook special, but you're not Orson so here's the Wolverine Historian version of the 2003 Outback Bowl:</p>
<p><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YX9VlsSR5Ck&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YX9VlsSR5Ck&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object></p>
<p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zt0krtxj5sk" rel="lightvideo">Part Two</a> awaits in the lightbox.</p>
<p> <strong>I don't know if this is good or bad.</strong> Justin Turner was credited with a special teams tackle on Saturday, but that did not actually happen:<br />
<blockquote>
<p>MSU corrected the official boxscore Sunday to show <a href="http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/mouton_jonas00.html">Jonas Mouton</a> in on the tackle, and Turner, the No. 2-rated player in Michigan's 2009 recruiting class according to Rivals.com, remains eligible to redshirt. </p>
</blockquote>
</p><p>So he's probably going to redshirt, and JT Floyd is going to start. Hurrah for good roster management? Boo because of thin secondary depth and the oddity of having such a highly-rated guy on a redshirt track? You make the call.</p>
<p><strong>Also of indeterminate benefit.</strong> Rodriguez is going to <a href="http://www.michigandaily.com/content/notebook-molk-back-weightroom-still-needs-more-recovery-time">take a look at linebackers</a> who aren't Ezeh or Mouton (both of whom are at least making a number of good plays to go along with their terrible horrible not good ones in the UFR I've gotten to): </p>
<blockquote><p>Yeah, every job is up for grabs every week,” Rodriguez said. “It sounds like coach speak, but our guys know they have to play at a certain level. Jonas (Mouton) and Obi (Ezeh) have played very, very hard. … I think Jonas is a very active player, and Obi has played solid, as well, but we can all play better.” …</p>
<p>&quot;You take away a couple of those scramble plays, their big third and long passes, and it was a pretty solid effort,” Rodriguez said. “But you have to count those. Those are part of the whole deal. … We've got to be more consistent I think is the word in all three phases, particularly defensively.&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
<p>&quot;Player X has played very hard&quot; is an excellent backhanded compliment. FWIW, I don't think anything will come of the starting jobs potentially coming open given Fitzgerald's shaky cameo and Leach's meh performance in the Eastern game. At least Mouton, who does appear to be blitzing a lot more recently, has guru-approved (and obvious) athletic ability. Leach doesn't. </p>
<p>As long as we're talking about the possibility of walk-ons busting into the starting lineup, let's <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/monday-presser-notes-10-5-09">highlight this bolded bit</a> from yesterday's press conference recap:</p>
<blockquote><p>Mike Williams wasn't 100% going into the game, but <strong>taking him out for Kovacs was a substitution issue</strong>, not an injury issue.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>IE: Kovacs is just playing because the coaches think he's better. Williams got yanked quickly, too, right after he failed to get out on a short zone when Michigan was running three-deep and gave up a 15-yard hitch on Michigan State's endless drive. I didn't even think that was his fault, FWIW, as he was tasked with faking a blitz and had no chance to get out there; with Warren playing in the parking lot that play was super easy. FWIW, Kovacs has turned in a couple of impressive tackles so far. He's probably a disaster in coverage but Michigan is using him as downhill run-stuffer, something he seems capable of.</p>
<p><strong>Family values, but on the tee-vee.</strong> Elliot Mealer will <a href="http://www.crescent-news.com/news/article/4681568">feature on that ESPN newsmagazine show</a> E:60. You know, the one with jump cuts of Jeremy Schaap. Details: </p>
<blockquote><p>Sports leader ESPN has followed the Mealer and Richer families for a year documenting how each family dealt with grief while moving ahead with their lives. On Tuesday the segment will air for the first time on ESPN and ESPN HD on a program called E:60 at 7 p.m.</p>
<p>&quot;I first got contacted really early in the morning after I had just spoken at a FCA event at Napoleon High School,&quot; explained Elliott Mealer, a senior at the time of the accident that claimed two lives. &quot;We talked it over as a family and all agreed that this could be something that could bring a positive light to the accident and everything after. As a little kid you always dream about being on ESPN and I guess in this sense it is bittersweet. I really wish I didn't have a story to tell but the fact of the matter is I do.&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Worth examining, yes, I talk like Yoda for no reason mmmm. </p>
<p><strong>Oh noes!</strong> You probably remember the nonstop caterwauling from Notre Dame fans in the aftermath of the referees getting <a href="http://mgoblog.com/content/overturn">Armando Allen's screen non-touchdown</a> <em>right</em>. I wonder if they will take up arms and <a href="http://hotdogandfriends.com/2009/10/03/notre-dames-2-point-conversion-not-even-close/">demand justice from the Big East replay officials</a> on behalf of Washington:</p>
<p><a href="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/ND2PointConversion1024x768.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 5px 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="ND-2-Point-Conversion-1024x768" border="0" alt="ND-2-Point-Conversion-1024x768" src="http://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/ND2PointConversion1024x768_thumb.jpg" width="564" height="424" /></a> </p>
<p>That knee you see on the ground is Robert Hughes's. His entire body, and therefore the ball, is outside the endzone at this moment. This is the two point conversion that Notre Dame got to go up three, and without it they would have lost 30-28 in regulation. The lack of a review here is inexplicable. It was obvious the instant NBC cut to a replay of the play. CONSPIRACY</p>
<p>(Also, people: download a torrent and get a frame from that instead of taking pictures of your TV.)</p>
<p><strong>Etc.:</strong> This is not Mark May pantomiming <a href="http://thebiglead.com/?p=23414">Lou Holtz performing fellatio on Jimmah</a>, but it kind of looks like it is. Barwis porn <a href="http://www.mywhiteboy.com/?p=430">migrates to web comics</a>. Braves &amp; Birds is <a href="http://bravesandbirds.blogspot.com/2009/10/i-dont-know-what-im-supposed-to-feel.html" target="_blank">confused about how to feel</a> about the game Saturday.</p>
<a name="more"></a>http://mgoblog.com/content/unverified-voracity-has-hot-sellers#comments2003conerdenard robinsonelliot mealerfloridajordan kovacsjustin turnernotre dameoutback bowlt-shirtsunverified voracityTue, 06 Oct 2009 15:32:21 +0000Brian22797 at http://mgoblog.com